Walki Group will acquire Polish ream wrapping producer Ek...

Walki Group will acquire Polish ream wrapping producer Ekopak-Jatne S.A.

Walki Group, a leading producer of protective packaging materials and technical laminates, today announced the completion of the acquisition of Ekopak-Jatne S.A.

Ekopak-Jatne is a Polish based producer of ream wrapping material with production facilities in Jatne, close to Warsaw. The company is also operating sales and distribution companies in France and Russia. In 2007, the net sales of the acquired entity amounted to 30 MEUR and it employs in total about 270 people.

"The closing of this acquisition is an important landmark in our growth strategy. With the business of Ekopak, Walki will get access to a new customer base in the growing cut size markets of Eastern Europe and Russia. Further, this deal supports our efforts to improve our customer service and it reinforces Walki's position as the leading provider of ream wrapping solutions", says Leif Frilund, President and CEO of Walki Group.

"Walki will build upon the excellent customer service concept developed by Ekopak. This will be acknowledged by customers as a firmly improved supply chain", says Gunilla Laakso, Vice President and General Manager of business area Paper Packaging. "The acquisition will further enable us to enhance the production efficiency and broaden our product range within ream wrapping".

The new entity will be integrated into Walki Group's Ream wrapping product line which is a part of the Business area Paper Packaging. Walki Group is currently producing ream wrapping materials in Finland, Germany, Sweden, the UK and China.

Ekopak-Jatne S.A. was acquired from its founders, Stefan Maciejewski and Andrzej Kostrzewa, who will continue to work for the combined entities. The parties have agreed not to disclose the acquisition price.

Walki Group is owned by Nordic private equity investor CapMan and the company’s management.